rife. With no more warning than if they
had risen out of the ground itself, there charged down upon the
defenceless settlers a band of Indians in full war paint, mounted upon
their piebald ponies, armed with spears, bows, arrows, and guns, which
weapons they brandished fiercely, while they gave their awful war-whoop
with all the power of their lungs.

Crying to their children, and gathering them close, as the mother hen
does her chickens at sight of a hawk, the women huddled together in a
panic-stricken group, while the doughty dogs faced the enemy with
flashing teeth and threatening growls, and the men rushed to snatch up
their guns, or anything else that might serve as an effective weapon.

For a moment it seemed as if blood must be shed. The Indians seemed
ripe for mischief and the stalwart Scots were determined to defend
their dear ones to the last extremity.

But before a blow was struck, the band, at a signal from their leader,
brought their horses to a halt, and ceased their hideous howlings. The
leader then drew out from his mob of followers, and holding up his
hands in token of his wish to parley, asked in broken English for the
chief man of the strangers.

There was at first some hesitancy among the Scots at replying to this.
They had never formally chosen a leader, although, naturally, some of
the men had shown themselves stronger and shrewder than others.
Presently all eyes turned towards Andrew Macrae. No man was fitter by
appearance or sagacity to be their spokesman, and, in response to their
unmistakable choice, he stepped forward.

'I'm but one of our little company, yet if ye'll tell me what ye mean
by a' this claverin' and scarin' peaceable folk, I'm ready to talk wi'
ye.'

The Indian leader straightened up in his saddle. The stern, stalwart
Scotsman was no antagonist to be trifled with, and his first intention
of using the ready wit for which he had a reputation, to bait the
strangers for the amusement of his followers, before proceeding to
rougher measures, underwent a change. Such a man needed to be dealt
with in a different fashion. Accordingly, assuming as much dignity as
he could command, he began to explain what the alarming demonstration
meant.

His speech was a strange jargon compounded of English, French and
Indian words that would have sorely puzzled poor Mr. Macrae, were it
not helped out by a vigorous pantomime, that enabled him to follow the
drift of it, after a fashion.